Back To School
by Lily Hanson
Summary: Kendall felt her muscles all tense up and her blood boil, and she had no idea what pissed her off more: the fact that this teacher, an educator of children, had already dismissed Cammy because of her upbringing, or because on the every first day of school, before officially meeting her student, she had already written her off as a failure.
1. Dismissed

_Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Dino Charge. This story is fan-made._

Kendall pulled into the school parking lot, stopping just in front of the building and looking to it with a smile on her face. It was the first day back, and Cammy had insisted her older sister drop her off.

Kids were saying goodbye to their parents and were headed inside the building. Some were excited to be back, and found their friends before running inside to see who would be their teacher and if they were in the same class. Other kids seemed nervous, showing a clear reluctance to leave their parents and their summer vacation behind.

Cammy was the latter. She wasn't happy her summer was over. She wasn't happy to be back in school. While she had made friends the past year, she knew things would be different now. She wouldn't have all the same kids in her class. She wouldn't have the same teacher and she was a year older. She would be expected to know more and do more. She held her stomach nervously as she looked out the back seat window.

"I think I'm sick."

"You're not sick, you're just anxious," Kendall told her and got out of the car, coming around to open Cammy's door. After she did, she knelt down, smiling at her sister. "You thrived last year, Cam, and there was so much going on. This year is going to be easier."

"But it's the fourth grade," Cammy said. "What if I'm not smart enough?"

"You're plenty smart."

"What if the kids don't like me?"

"You have friends from last year, and you'll make new friends this year."

"What if the teacher is mean?"

"Then that teacher will have to deal with me," Kendall insisted and gently pulled her sister out of the car. "Look, some parents are walking in with their kids. Would it help you if I stayed until you met your teacher?"

Cammy nodded her head, so Kendall checked her watch. She technically wasn't required to show up at the museum by a certain time, but she didn't like coming in late in the day. Though she didn't have a boss to answer to, she had many employees who would need her advice, assistance and support throughout the day. She didn't want to be absent when she was needed.

"I have about twenty minutes," she told Cammy. "I'm sure we'll find your teacher by then, but after that, I have to go."

"Okay," Cammy answered and took Kendall's hand as they walked into the school. Students and their parents were being directed to the gymnasium, where the teachers were all waiting for their students. Cammy noticed the corner for the grade four students and pointed it out to Kendall. However, upon glancing at the teachers, she already didn't like her odds.

Ms. Patterson, the teacher from her previous year, was one of the choices. Cammy had liked her, for the most part, but her obsession with cats annoyed her students throughout the year. Still, Cammy had done well in her class, and would much prefer to sit through another year of cat puns, stickers, and images than be placed in a classroom with Mrs. White.

Mrs. White was an older lady, very close to retiring, based on what the other students said the year before. Cammy had never heard anything nice about her. Her tests were hard, she gave a lot of homework and didn't believe in recess. Cammy heard rumors that students in Mrs. White's class would skip recess and spend that time working on math sheets. She wasn't sure that last part was true, but she was worried about all the other stories.

Cammy walked over to the corner of the gym nervously, and waited impatiently as Kendall read over the two lists. She hoped, prayed even that Ms. Patterson would be her teacher two years in a row, but when Kendall turned to Mrs. White. She gently pushed Cammy forward.

"Why don't you introduce yourself?" she suggested to Cammy, but before the little girl could say or do anything, Mrs. White looked to her and then scoffed loudly.

"I know you," she said, turning her head away. "You're that foster kid."

Cammy was a little taken aback that Mrs. White already knew her. There were plenty of kids in the school and she had never interacted with her new teacher before. She didn't know how to respond to the comment. Fortunately, Kendall seemed to step up. She pulled Cammy back, putting her arms around her as she looked to her sister's teacher.

"Actually, Camille was adopted earlier this year."

"Doesn't matter. Once a foster kid, always a foster kid," the teacher said, then pointed to the line of students behind her, none of which seemed too happy they were placed with her. "Don't worry about your daughter. I'll figure out something to do with her."

"She's actually my sister," Kendall corrected. "And I'm sure Cammy will surprise you with just how eager she is to learn."

Mrs. White looked to Cammy, then back at Kendall. She pulled her glasses down slightly to stare directly at the scientist.

"I've been teaching since before you were born. I have seen kids from every walk of life come through my classroom. Kids like her _always_ struggle, and they _always_ give me the toughest time. I don't expect much from your... sister. It bodes well for you to start lowering your expectations now."

Kendall felt her muscles all tense up and her blood boil, and she had no idea what pissed her off more: the fact that this teacher, an educator of children, had already dismissed Cammy because of her upbringing, or because on the every first day of school, before officially meeting her student, she had already written her off as a failure. Kendall hugged Cammy a little closer and thought carefully of the words she used as she spoke.

"If you underestimate my sister's potential, I will make this the most challenging year of your teaching life," she growled. Mrs. White looked back at her.

"Is that a threat?"

"You'll decide how the year goes," Kendall said and then knelt down and smiled at Cammy. "You're going to do great this year, Cam. All you need to do is your best, got it?"

"I wanna switch teachers," Cammy whispered. Kendall shook her head.

"You're going to be fine," she promised. "Chase has already promised to make you ice cream after school. Bring some of your friends along too. Just focus on that today if things get a little tough, alright?"

"I guess."

"No matter what happens, at 3:30, you'll be at the museum with me and the others," Kendall promised her sister. When Cammy nodded her head and walked off nervously to join her new classmates in line, Kendall glared at the teacher.

"I was in foster care," she told Mrs. White. "And now I own a museum and am widely respected in my field. If Cammy comes home from school today discouraged, you will hear from me again."

"I've dealt with worse parents than you."

"I'm not the parent," Kendall said. "You're lucky they aren't here today."

With that, she wished Cammy a good day, glared at Mrs. White one more time and then walked out of the school. She didn't want to show any weakness in front of Cammy's new teacher, but her stomach lurched. She hated the thought of leaving her little sister in the destructive hands of an unprofessional. She wanted to pull Cammy for the day, from the class, and even from the school, but she couldn't. Cammy's reputation as a foster child was likely to follow her around for the rest of her life. She couldn't be taught to run away from it.

However, she was still too young to stand up for herself. Kendall was determined to fight in her sister's place. She just hoped the year wouldn't come down to that.


	2. Trials of the Past

Kendall found she couldn't focus at work. It didn't matter if she was creating a charger, running the museum, or checking up on the cafe. The first and only thing on her mind was the vicious words Cammy's new teacher had said.

" _Doesn't matter. Once a foster kid, always a foster kid,"_ she had uttered. _"I've been teaching since before you were born. I have seen kids from every walk of life come through my classroom. Kids like her always struggle, and they always give me the toughest time. I don't expect much from your... sister. It would bode well for you to start lowering your expectations now."_

Kendall's blood was still hot from hearing those words. It didn't matter how she tried to twist them, or what reasons she tried to come up with to explain the teacher's beliefs. Perhaps, yes, all of her former students who spent time in foster care had been difficult. However, putting that belief on Cammy, and writing her off before Cammy even got the chance to introduce herself was wrong.

She remembered the day she met Cammy. The Rangers had organized a day at the museum for foster kids to spend some time and bond with adults who had also been in foster care as children. The event was a huge success, and if Kendall could find the funds in the museum budget, she would host it again every year.

On that day, there was one kid who didn't seem to want to connect with anyone. Koda, Shelby, all the Rangers tried to find a suitable foster mentor for her, and even tried to take her under their wing themselves, but Cammy had refused. She was relatively new to foster care, still mourning the loss of her mother and utterly terrified of dinosaurs. Kendall smiled a little, thinking of how Cammy had started off fearing the giant reptiles only to later develop a strong passion for them, wishing to be a paleontologist and make her living off dinosaurs.

Kendall remembered being pointed in Cammy's direction and seeing the little girl for the first time. She was sitting on a bench and practically oozing fear, anxiety and pain. Her heart reached out to Cammy and all she wanted to do was take the little girl in her arms and protect her.

It infuriated her that Cammy's new teacher didn't feel the same way. Kendall was completely mortified that this teacher, who was entrusted every day with the lives and the well being of children, would turn her nose up at those that needed her the most. Cammy was now a happy, well rounded child, with good parents, a stable home and a very loving environment. However, her past was far from being erased, and though it would fade, it would forever haunt her.

Chase and Shelby caught a glimpse of it when they had taken Cammy to Shelby's parents' cottage. Despite a happy life, Cammy was still troubled by her past. She would have moments, usually just before bed or in the middle of the night when she would completely lose control of herself. She would scream out, letting her parents know, in her own way, that she was terrified of being torn away from her home once again. If Kendall was around, she could calm the girl by promising her that her home was with the Fishers, and they would always be her family. However, on nights where Kendall was back in her apartment, if Cammy did throw a fit, she would have to race back in the middle of the night to help her parents.

Cammy was still scared. In eight years, she had never met her father, lost her mother, and lost the first two parents to ever show her true unconditional love. When she finally landed in what she and Kendall both called their forever home, she was still constantly faced with the threat of losing it all. Kendall hated that her responsibility as a Ranger meant she was at risk of leaving Cammy behind. She hated that, without warning, the little girl could lose her.

She needed a safe environment all around. Cammy needed to know that no matter what happened at home, she would be supported and looked after in school. Despite her obsession with cats that seemed to drive Cammy crazy five days a week, Kendall had loved Ms. Patterson. She had been a teacher who wanted the very best for Cammy and who worked hard to make sure the little girl had all the opportunities she deserved. Kendall didn't get the same feeling from Mrs. White, and still felt sick that she had practically abandoned her little sister for the day.

"Is there something on your mind, milady?" Ivan asked, snapping Kendall out of her thoughts as she glanced over to see the Knight making his way further into the lab. She sighed and checked the time, realizing that though she had been trying to get all her work done, she had spent the better part of the day lost in thought and skipped lunch. Usually, when she forgot to eat, one of the Rangers would come down to check on her. It seemed today it was Ivan's turn.

"It's Cammy's first day at school," Kendall said, putting aside her newest charger. "I got to meet her teacher."

"And by the scowl on your face, I assume it did not go well," Ivan said and Kendall gave her head a little nod.

"She's written Cammy off. She's not going to try her best to teach her because she already believes Cammy's not going to amount to much."

Right away Kendall noticed the hurt and angry look on Ivan's face and she knew her feelings were valid.

"She told you that?"

"In her own words," Kendall nodded. "I had to leave Cammy there, with her, and I just feel... awful."

"Is there a reason you did leave her to be with that... crooked-nose knave?"

"She said it has to do with Cammy being in foster care."

"But the young child was adopted," Ivan frowned, clearly a little confused.

"She will have always been a foster child," Kendall stated. "I can't let her think that when people try to judge her for that, she can run away."

"But she's only a child."

"I know," Kendall sighed. "And I'm ready to fight on her behalf, it's just... I hate waiting until something actually happens but I don't want to jump the gun either. I already threatened the teacher if she dismissed Cammy but I feel like that wasn't enough."

"Cammy is quite a scrappy child when the moment calls for it," Ivan assured her. "With your support, I'm sure she'll be able to fight on her own during the day."

"But I don't want her to," Kendall said. "I spent a long time fighting that part of my past."

"And you've come out the victor."

"I shouldn't have had to fight it in the first place," Kendall said. "The validity of my work shouldn't be influenced by how I grew up. My potential shouldn't have been dictated by measures beyond my control. Cammy's just a kid. It's not her fault her mother drank. She's not even the reason her mother drank. Cammy wasn't responsible for the circumstances that led to her being in foster care, nor for what happened to her at that time. So why should those be used as a measure of her future success? Why does anyone think they have a right to deny her the opportunities they would only be too happy to grant kids who have only had one home their whole lives?"

"Lady Kendall, for what it's worth, the Rangers and I have never used your misfortunes to guess your true potential," Ivan assured Kendall, feeling she was so worked up for reasons beyond what happened that morning with Cammy. "And anyone who has must be feelings poorly for ever doubting your spirit. Young Cammy will take after you in that sense. I can assure you."

"I wish she didn't have to," Kendall sighed. Ivan made his way over and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Perhaps it's best that she does. No life is without strife."


	3. A Rough First Day

Kendall was just starting to close up the lab, preparing for picking Cammy up from her first day of school. She was a little eager to get going, but couldn't skip out on properly sealing the lab.

Since Heckyl knew the location, and wasn't shy about inviting Snide inside and causing havoc, Kendall had upgraded the security systems. And, just for an added measure, whenever she or Koda weren't inside, the lab was completely locked down. Only the Rangers with their energems could get inside. Or so, Kendall hoped that would be the case. When it came to Heckyl, nothing was ever guaranteed.

Just as she was double checking that the lock down was successful, the alarm went off. Because of the new security feature, she already knew the other Rangers were getting the alert and would be able to track down where it was coming from on their communicators, but since she was in the lab anyways, she wanted to be sure she had the proper location. While the communicators could get them pretty close to the exactly location of any alien, her technology in the lab was more specific.

She opened up her laptop and powered up the tracker. Right away a pit formed in her stomach.

"This can't be right," she said, double checking the coordinates and bringing up the location on the map. It was Cammy's school. There was a monster on school grounds, perhaps even in the building.

"Rangers," she called them up, hoping they were already headed out to battle. Chase was the first to pick up.

"This is some kind of joke, right?" he asked. "Heckyl wouldn't go after her again, would he?"

"He's going to be sorry if he does," Kendall nodded. "I can't identify who this is exactly, but we need to get there and fast. Tyler, Shelby, Riley and Ivan, you'll evacuate the school. I want everyone getting to safety as soon as possible. Koda, Chase, Jeremy, you're with me. We're finding Cammy."

"Heckyl no hurt Cammy again," Koda confirmed before Kendall cut communication with her team and rushed upstairs to join them.

-Dino-Charge-

Cammy's first day at school hadn't gone as planned, not that Cammy really knew what to expect. None of her friends from the previous year were in her class, meaning she would only be able to see them at recess. And, despite Kendall's threats, her teacher seemed to pay her no mind. Cammy tried to do her best, raising her hand to ask and answer questions, as well as trying to seem helpful by volunteering for jobs around the classroom for the first week. However, her teacher always seemed to dismiss her, either by ignoring her completely, or by telling her the jobs she wanted were too important for her, and that she would do better with something a little more meaningless.

However, that wasn't the worst part of the day. Shit hit the fan when Cammy lost interest in what her teacher was saying close to the end of the day. Mrs. White was explaining the routine for packing up and heading out of the school but since she had already dismissed Cammy throughout the day, the little girl didn't see the point in listening anymore. Instead, she was gazing out the window, hoping that her sister would be able to talk to her teacher and make life a little easier for her. It was at that point when she spotted him making his way across the school grounds, trying to get inside the building.

"It's Wrench!" Cammy cried out suddenly, surprising her classmates and her teacher.

"Camille, focus," her teacher insisted but Cammy shook her head.

"No, it's a monster! There's a monster at school!"

"Camille, I have had enough of your foolish antics," Mrs. White rolled her eyes and tried to get back to her lesson, but Cammy ran to the windows to pull down the curtains. Mrs. White gasped when Cammy left her seat. "Camille Morgan Fisher, if you don't return to your seat right now..."

"We have to hide!" Cammy insisted, and by now she had the interest of the other students, who were also getting up from their desks to see if Cammy was right. Mrs. White was about to lose her head seeing Cammy had stolen the attention of the students.

"Whoa, cool! There is a monster outside!" one of the boys called out, just before Cammy shut the last blind. Then she ran to the door.

"You have to lock it!" she told the teacher. Mrs. White shook her head.

"I knew you kids were all the same," she said. "Camille, if you don't return to your seat right now..."

Suddenly, there were screams coming from the hallway, sparking fear into all the students and peaking Mrs. White's curiosity. She made her way over to the door and opened it. As soon as she did, she spotted Wrench. He was roaming down the halls, trying to peak into classrooms as though he was looking for someone specific.

"Stay inside," Cammy said and pulled her teacher back into the classroom and slammed the door shut before she locked it. Then she raced over to a nearby desk and started to pull it over to the door. "We can't let him come in."

"You have no idea what you're doing," Mrs. White said, grabbing Cammy by the arm before she could put the desk up against the door. "Go sit down."

"But..."

"Students, I need you to be very quiet," Mrs. White announced. "Take cover under your desks and don't say a word. We're under a lock down."

"Under our desks?" Cammy asked. "That's not going to do anything. We need to block the doors!"

"And what do you know about any of this?" Mrs. White scoffed. "You are going to sit in the corner and stay silent, or I will send you out in the hall to deal with this monster yourself!"

Cammy looked up at her teacher, first in fear, then with absolute rage. Mrs. White had doubted her the whole day, and Cammy had no idea what to do except just take it. But after this threat, after hearing that her teacher really didn't seem to care for her, something lit up inside Cammy. Perhaps it was because Wrench was out in the hallway, and Cammy knew how to take cover in the presence of aliens. Perhaps it was all the times she had pretended to be Kendall. Either way, Cammy hadn't felt so powerful since the day the purple energem had chosen her in Kendall's place.

She pushed Mrs. White out of the way, knocking the older lady right to the floor and then called on the other students to start moving their desks to the door. She wasn't sure why a lot of kids who didn't know her would listen to her. Maybe it was the sudden confidence in her voice, or maybe they were a little shocked to see her pushing her teacher down. Either way, Cammy was going to use this newfound strength to protect herself and her fellow classmates.

Hell, she would even protect her teacher.

When several desks were blocking the door, Cammy told the students to hide around the classroom and stay quiet. Wrench would have no reason to come in if he thought the room was empty. Less even if he thought she wasn't in the room. She had no idea what the monster was doing in her school, but since she had a connection to the Rangers, and she had been targeted already, Cammy thought it was for the best for everyone if she stayed completely out of sight.

But as she glanced around the room, she noticed there was nowhere left for her to hide. All the other students had already taken cover in the best spots, clearly looking after themselves. All the cupboards and storage units were crammed with her classmates. The best place she found still left her rather exposed.

In the hallway, she could hear Wrench coming closer. He was calling out for a little girl in general, so her connection to the Rangers wasn't exposed just yet, but Cammy was now certain it was her he was after. If she stayed in the class, her fellow students would be in harm's way.

"They've got to be on their way," Cammy muttered to herself, positive the Rangers would race over to help her as soon as they knew there was trouble. It was only a matter of time before they showed up. They would all keep her safe. However, a matter of time could be anywhere from the next minute to half an hour, which was how long it took to get from the museum to the school. If Cammy stepped out into the halls and tried to get as far away from her classmates and the rest of the school, she risked her own life.

"It's just Wrench," she told herself. She knew if she was caught, he would take her to Heckyl. She also knew Wrench was just as cunning as Heckyl, though since he was more cowardly, he wasn't a tough an opponent. Cammy liked her odds against the overgrown tin can than she did against Heckyl. "Kendall's got to be on her way, and it's just Wrench. I... I have to do it."

She looked to her classmates, already second guessing herself, but seeing they looked fearful, and seeing Mrs. White had taken cover for herself and was doing nothing to protect her students, Cammy felt the need to step up.

"I'll distract him," she told her classmates and started to push some of the desks out of the way of the door. She gave herself just enough room that she could slip out, but if Wrench tried to come in, he would still need to push hard on the door before he could make his way inside.

Once she was out in the hall, she was immediately spotted by Wrench. She tried not to look at him, hoping that if he didn't see her face, he wouldn't recognize her. Wrench seemed intrigued, but since he knew he was in a school with a couple hundred students, about half of which were girls, he figured the odds that this one in specific was Cammy were low. Especially since she had had run ins with monsters before, and he believed she wouldn't be foolish enough to face him alone.

So he tried to enter inside another class. When Cammy heard the screams from the other kids inside, she clenched her fists. Seeing a backpack abandoned on the floor, Cammy picked it up and threw it right at Wrench, hitting him in the leg. He turned to her, his eyes meeting hers.

"How dare you!" he shouted.

"Don't hurt them!" Cammy cried back and reached for another backpack. She threw it at Wrench and then quickly turned to run. She could hear his heavy footsteps coming after her and she immediately regretted her decision to be brave. Right now, she felt stupid for trying to prove to her teacher that she had more to offer. Not to mention, she wasn't Kendall, nor was she still the one the purple energem had chosen. She was just a nine year old girl in way over her head. If the Rangers didn't get here soon, this would be for nothing.

"Come back here you little twerp!" Wrench called out and Cammy glanced over her shoulder to see just how close he was to catching her. She noticed he was a few steps behind and he wasn't very fast. If she picked up the pace a little bit, she could maybe outrun him briefly and find somewhere new to hide. It would have to be away from the other people in the school, though. She had done this to keep the others safe. There would be no point in getting caught and putting them in danger.

However, her plan didn't pan out like she hoped. Glancing over her shoulder meant she wasn't looking where she was running, and since the school was filled with young, messy children, there were jackets, backpacks, pencil cases and shoes everywhere in the halls. Cammy stumbled over a pair of rain boots and hit the ground. She tried to get up as quickly as she could, but it was already too late. Wrench was standing over her, his axe in hand. Cammy wasn't sure why he had come all this way for her, but feared for her life.

"Leave me alone!" she screamed and scrambled to her feet, hoping to at least run off quickly enough to avoid being chopped in half. However, Wrench grabbed her by the arm, yanked her back and then held his axe across her chest.

"You're going to come with me," he said. "There's a certain scientist whose brain I want to pick, and you're my insurance token."

"No, no, no!" Cammy shouted and tried to push Wrench's axe away. He only held the handle up to her, but in the scuffle, his axe tilted towards her and with Cammy moving her arms around, the blade cut her along the side of her elbow. Cammy howled with the pain then felt absolute panic wash over her when she saw blood flowing from her arm.

"No hurt Cammy!" from nowhere, Koda appeared, ripping Wrench's axe right from his hands and swinging wildly at the alien. Cammy felt to the ground, completely paralyzed from the panic that had consumed her. She was certain she was going to die.

"Koda, take him outside!" Chase called out. Cammy only knew because she heard his accent. At this point, her vision was starting to fade, as her eyes were focused only on her bloody wound. A loud roar ripped through the air before glass shattered and a loud clunk was heard. Cammy assumed Koda had throw Wrench outside to take him away from Cammy and the others in the school, but she couldn't focus on that enough to be sure. Her arm was bleeding, dripping to the ground. This was more blood than she had ever seen, and it was all coming from her.

Suddenly, something was wrapped around her, covering her wound as well as the rest of her body. She was slightly distracted from the blood and her cut enough to recognize her brother's sweater. Looking up, she saw him kneeling next to her, already starting to remove his shirt. She didn't know why until he cut off a piece with his Dino Sabre and tied it tightly around her arm. She was still too paralyzed to speak, but seeing her brother smiling at her, and vaguely hearing his voice telling her she would be okay offered her a little comfort. Then, she felt something else wrap around her, this time picking her up. She glanced over, saw it was Kendall and felt her body relax completely.

"You're safe now," Kendall's voice broke through the haze that was building up in Cammy's head. She nodded her head and let the haze take over. As she fell limp in her sister's arms, Kendall passed her over to Jeremy. "Please keep her safe."

"Hey, I love her too," Jeremy said, not because he thought Kendall doubted that fact, but to remind his sister that though no one loved or cared for Cammy as much as she, he did care enough that he would never let anything happen to her. "You just focus on getting this message across, once and for all. Cammy is off limits."

Kendall nodded her head, and though it killed her to leave Cammy behind twice in one day, she needed to stay. She knew her brother would look after the little girl for now. Kendall's job was to ensure Cammy was never threatened again.

She hoped out the window Koda had thrown Wrench through and saw the caveman had lost control of himself. Kendall would have tried to calm him down, but Wrench did deserve the beating. He hadn't just targeted Cammy and hurt her, but he had walked right into a school, threatening the lives of hundreds of innocent children and the staff. She joined Chase in watching over Koda, making sure that the caveman was protected from himself. In his rage, he often overlooked attacks against him, and could be hurt if he wasn't ready to defend himself.

But Kendall soon saw her opening. Koda was tiring and since Wrench seemed to be a robotic species of alien, he could fight as long as his internal hardware wasn't damaged. Koda had managed to put in a few impressive dents to his armour, but so far, that was about it. However, since Koda had slowed down, he wasn't in Kendall's way as much, and seeing her opportunity, she loaded her Dino Blaster with one of her newer chargers.

She had admittedly built this one out of rage, and after testing it to see its powers, realized it was too much for any of the Rangers to handle, regardless of the mode they were in. If it were used in battle, they could take out a monster, but cause themselves serious damage as well.

But that was something Kendall was willing to sacrifice. After all, nothing hurt her more than seeing her little sister in pain. On top of that, if Wrench, and eventually Heckyl, saw the power contained inside a charger, and saw her using it, they would think twice about going after her sister again.

However, before Kendall could fire off the blast, she noticed a blue light enveloped Chase, Koda and Wrench. She knew this light well, and turned her gaze over to Heckyl.

"You insolent buffoon!" Heckyl shouted and Kendall was surprised to see he was talking to Wrench. "What did you think this was going to accomplish?"

"Master Heckyl, I was only trying to..."

"Trying to what?" Heckyl interrupted in something of a mocking tone. "I ask you to build me a weapon that would terrorize the Rangers, and you think that's permission to go after the child?"

Kendall furrowed her brows deeply in pure confusion. Who was Heckyl to tell anyone it was wrong to attack Cammy after he let Snide nearly killed her and manipulated her love for Kendall to steal two energems? It didn't make any sense.

"If you, or anyone else, cause that child any more harm, there will be hell to pay. We are after the energem. We seek to kill the Rangers. That child is off bounds."

"But Master Heckyl, you said..."

"It doesn't matter what you think I said," Heckyl shouted, and then Kendall noticed he glanced her way, almost as if he was looking for her reaction. Her head started to spin as she began to wonder if this was all some kind of ploy. When he had assumed Chase's body, and Kendall still rejected him, she thought he was finished with her. She thought he no longer wanted anything to do with her. Had he been taken over by his emotions in the heat of the moment, blurting out anything even if it wasn't true? Or was he still just doing what he did best by manipulating her.

Kendall shook her head. Either way, it didn't matter. She wanted nothing to do with him, and felt she owed him nothing, regardless of the way he seemed to be defending Cammy. He had already caused enough trouble. There was no chance for him at redemption.

"We are headed back to the ship, and I will be sure to find a punishment for you," Heckyl said to Wrench and just as quickly as he appeared, he was gone, taking Wrench with him.

"That was weird," Chase said as he was released from Heckyl's hold. He made his way over to Koda, checking up on the caveman.


	4. Siblings' Mission

While Kendall, Jeremy, Chase and Koda were searching the school for Cammy, Ivan and the other Rangers were in charge of the evacuation. The Rangers were certain that an alien showing up at Cammy's school meant the little girl was their target, but just to be safe, they needed to be sure the rest of the students and staff were out of harm's way. They didn't want to lose a life due to oversight.

They were clearing out classrooms one by one, each time asking the teacher or adult in the room if all students were accounted for. Until now, the answer was always yes. It seemed in the chaos, teachers and staff had managed to gather up all the students in their care into a single room and keep Wrench out. However, one teacher shook her head no, and looked to the Rangers with some disappointment.

"I have one student, Camille. She made a run for it," the teacher pointed to the door.

"And you let her go?" Shelby as the pink Ranger asked.

"She was nothing but trouble," Mrs. White said and Ivan remembered his conversation with Kendall. She had been upset about leaving Cammy at school because her new teacher had written her off, claiming that because she had spent some time in foster care she wasn't worth the same effort as the rest of the students in her class.

"So you're the filthy wretch that doubted Cammy," he said, forgetting for a moment that he was the gold Ranger, and his connection to Cammy was supposed to remain a secret. Still, when that thought occurred to him, it didn't matter. Cammy was as much a part of his clan of Rangers as any of the actual Rangers. He would be loyal to her to the end.

"You know Camille?" Mrs. White asked, looking to the Rangers with a bit of surprise.

"Gold," Tyler put his hand on Ivan's shoulder and tried to rein him in a bit before Ivan said too much, but the Knight shrugged him off and looked through his helmet at Cammy's teacher.

"Indeed, I know young Cammy. We have all had our run ins with the youngling. In fact, she has helped us many a times in our quest to protect this planet."

"Camille? The foster kid."

"Hey, she's a lot more than just that," Shelby stated, glaring through her helmet. "She's a really sweet kid."

"Sharp, too," Riley added.

Ivan leaned in closer to Mrs. White, "Cammy is a good child. And if I hear you're treating her any differently, I will be sure to report you to your highest authority and have you removed from your position as an educator."

"Or we'll just make this one of the toughest years of your career," Tyler shrugged, thinking it was probably best the Rangers didn't storm into the school board on Cammy's behalf. It was bad enough Cammy's connection to them had been revealed to her teacher and the students. They didn't need more people knowing and having more attention put on Cammy. Fortunately, Riley was of the same mind, and he turned to the kids in the class, kneeling down so he was at eye level with all the students he could see.

"Hey, but this has to be our little secret, alright," he said and saw most of them nodding. It was most likely out of fear, and he and the Rangers had to expect that most of them would tell their parents about the Rangers. He just hoped that they would be so excited that the Rangers spoke to them; they would neglect to mention that it was on Cammy's behalf. "We're going to keep you all safe, we promise, but to do that, we need your help. No one can know you know us, alright. If the bad guys find out, they might come back. We don't want that, do we?"

Again the students were nodding their heads and Riley and the Rangers had to trust in them that their secret was safe.

Ivan turned to Mrs. White one last time, "Have we reached an understanding?"

"This is too much for me," Mrs. White shook her head. "I am getting way too old for this."

"But have we..."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Mrs. White said. Ivan gestured to the door.

"Escort the rest of these children away from the school. Ensure they are returned safely to their homes. We'll continue our evacuation of the school."

Mrs. White nodded and following their instructions helped the rest of the students get out of the building safely. Once they were gone, Tyler turned to Ivan.

"When we're in suits, we can't prioritize Cammy," he said. "The best way to keep her safe is to keep her out of this Ranger stuff as much as possible. If people find out..."

"Cammy is a good child," Ivan said. "This is her first day and she's already been placed in the care of a woman who shows her no faith. Part of my duty as a Ranger may be anonymity, but my loyalty to my friends is above all."

"Besides," Shelby added, "You heard what that teacher said. Cammy took off, and it looks like she did nothing to stop her. I'd have wrung her neck."

"What's done is done," Riley stepped in, looking to his teammates. "Right now, we need to focus on getting the rest of the students out of here. If Cammy took off, she's alone. And I'm assuming that, like me, you all want to make sure she's okay."

-Dino-Charge-

Koda slapped Chase's hand away and growled. After his fight with Wrench, Koda had emerged the winner. Had it not been for Heckyl's interference, and with a little help from his teammates, Wrench could have been destroyed. However, it wasn't without cost. As a result of him blindly attacking Wrench to protect Cammy, Koda had taken a few hard hits. He was bruised up and had several cuts. None were too serious since he had been morphed and so the suit took most of the damage. Still, he needed to be cleaned up.

Generally, Kendall was the one who took care of Koda. She was the first person he trusted and by the time the others joined, Kendall was the best at treating his wounds without much pain. He trusted her hands, she was always gentle, and she always warned him when his treatment might sting a little. To Chase's credit, he was gentle too, but since Koda was still a little riled up from the fight, Chase wasn't good enough.

"I know, mate. This stuff always stings. But if you want to avoid an infection, you've got to let me clean these out."

"Hurt too much," Koda said. "Can't be good."

"I know. And I get it, mate. I'd rather have Kendall here too, but..."

"Understand," Koda nodded glumly.

"The sooner we get cleaned up, the sooner we can go see her," Chase promised the blue Ranger, then held up the bottle of rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball. "Think you can suck it up?"

Koda nodded and puffed his chest, trying to appear brave. Chase couldn't help but chuckle when, once he started cleaning Koda's wounds, the caveman's chest deflated and he cried out softly.

"Ouch. That still hurt."

"I'm really sorry, mate," Chase smirked and Koda frowned.

"It's not funny. That is angry fluff."

-Dino-Charge-

Cammy's eyes fluttered open slowly. First, she thought she was dead. All she could remember from before passing out was a lot of blood – her blood. Then she remembered Wrench, she remembered being face to face with him and cutting herself on his axe. For sure, she had to be dead.

But then she remembered Jeremy and Kendall showing up. Both promised she would be okay and that she was safe. They wouldn't lie to her. She had to be alive, right?

She blinked as her eyes started to focus a little more. The blurriness of her vision faded and she found herself looking up at a white ceiling. She glanced around a little more and saw an arm draped across her body, resting ever so gently, yet protectively over her arm, which was wrapped up and held close to her own body by a sling. Following the arm up, Cammy breathed a little sigh of relief to see it belonged to Kendall. Her older sister was lying next to her on the bed, her arms wrapped around her, keeping her safe even in the hospital.

"Kendall," she whispered to wake her sister, but was suddenly hushed gently. Looking to the source of the noise, she saw Jeremy getting up from a chair across the room and coming over.

"You're okay, Cam. And Kendall's just fine too. But don't wake her up."

"But, but..."

"Cammy, you're okay," Jeremy promised her again, this time with a bright, confident smile. "Your cut feels worse than it is. You'll be home tonight. You're okay."

"But I want Kendall."

"I just got her to sleep," Jeremy shook his head. "You really scared her, Cam. What were you doing alone in the halls?"

"Wrench was in school," Cammy said. She figured her brother knew that. He had showed up when Wrench attacked her. "I... I thought he was coming for me."

"So you run away?"

"I... I didn't want anyone to get hurt," Cammy said. "Mrs. White didn't believe me when I said he was walking into school, and then didn't try to help me keep the other kids safe. She's been mean to be all day, and I've been trying my very best."

"Kendall explained that part," Jeremy nodded. "I'm really sorry about that, Cammy. But still, what drove you to run off like that alone?"

"If Wrench found me, other people might get hurt," Cammy said. "I had to hide the best to keep them safe, but there was nowhere good to hide."

"You were keeping the other kids safe?" Jeremy's heart warmed a little hearing this, even if he was enraged that Cammy felt that responsibility fell on her. He knew it wasn't completely the teacher's fault. Cammy knew about Wrench and the aliens because of her connection to the Rangers. Instinctively, she would have stepped up. However, with a teacher in the room, Cammy shouldn't have been alone. Her teacher should have taken control. "You're a brave kid. And for the record, everyone got out of the school safely. You did your job well."

Cammy smiled a little. At least her plan had worked, even if it didn't go as she imagined. Jeremy pulled his chair closer to her bed and then checked to make sure Kendall was really asleep before he leaned in to ask his next question.

"Why was Wrench coming after you?"

Cammy didn't answer with words, but rather turned her head to look at Kendall for a minute. Jeremy clenched his fists.

"What did he want with her?"

"He said he wanted to pick her brain."

Jeremy sighed as he put his head in his hands. Tears welled up in Cammy's eyes.

"I'm sorry."

"No," he looked to his littlest sister, shaking his head. "No, Cammy, I'm not mad at you. You did great. You were brave, you did well. I'm so proud of you. I just..."

"Kendall?" Cammy asked and Jeremy nodded.

"Do you ever worry about her?"

Cammy looked to her brother as though he had just asked her the world's stupidest question, which, in a way, he had. Cammy had only recently stolen two energems from the Rangers on a promise that Kendall would be safe. Clearly, she worried greatly.

"Right, you know that I mean," Jeremy said and he took his energem out from under his shirt and looked to it. "Cammy, I stayed in town because I wanted to stay close to Kendall. I wanted to be there to help her, to look after her. All I could think of, right before my energem chose me, was how badly I wanted to keep her safe. That can't be a coincidence, can it?"

"Energems pick good people," Cammy explained to her brother. "It's good you want to protect her."

"Don't you think there's a reason it chose me, though? I mean, this energem waited what, 65 million years before choosing to bond to someone."

"That doesn't mean it wanted you to protect Kendall," Cammy said, though her voice cracked a little, showing she wasn't sure of her statement.

"Heckyl's got this strange obsession with her, doesn't he?" Jeremy said. "Just now, Wrench attacked you to get to her."

"Kendall is a Ranger and she makes the chargers."

"No Kendall, no chargers," Jeremy said. "No chargers, and the Rangers are in some serious trouble."

"You think they figured that out?"

"I think we would have really underestimated Heckyl if we think he hasn't," Jeremy said just before noticing the look of fear on his little sister's face and it occurred to him just how terrifying a thought like that would be on a regular day. Never mind what must have been flooding Cammy's mind right after being attacked by Wrench. "Hey, Cam, I'm really sorry. I don't want you thinking something's going to happen to her, alright? She's tough, you know. She can look after herself. And she's got all of us when she needs it. There's ten of us, remember. We're keeping each other safe."

Cammy shook her head and turned into Kendall, pushing in closer to her sister and waking her up. Kendall's eyes opened and feeling Cammy needed her, she immediately started to worry.

"Cammy, your arm. Is it okay? How are you feeling?"

Cammy only snuggled in closer to her sister. Kendall adjusted the little girl's arm so it would be comfortable and so Cammy wouldn't accidentally pull the stitches and then turned to her brother.

"We're just worried about you," he told Kendall. "Wrench wanted you."

"He didn't get me."

"Just... be careful, Kendall," Jeremy begged her. "Please, please, watch your back."


	5. The Start of a Good Year

Thanks to her stitches, Cammy got a couple extra days off school. Of course, since Wrench had appeared in the school, the building had been shut down for a couple of days to allow for repairs and so the students and staff could recover. Cammy didn't return with the rest of her classmates due to her injuries, but she was back at school before she knew it.

She stood in front of the building, looking to it with fear. She doubted she would ever feel safe in it again. Between Wrench showing up and Mrs. White showing no faith in her, she knew this would be her toughest year.

Kendall knelt next to her, smiling softly to her sister, "You're going to be fine."

"What if he comes back?"

"No one's coming back. No one's going to hurt you," Kendall promised her, but Cammy wasn't so sure. She was worried for herself, but more than that, she worried for her sister. Her talk with Jeremy in the hospital had her thinking about Kendall's odds. Heckyl liked her, a little too much, and Wrench had come after her once. She was the purple Ranger and she was the only Ranger who could create the weapons that would stop the aliens. It would make sense to take her out first.

"What about you?"

"I keep telling you, Cammy. I'm not going anywhere," Kendall insisted, sighing a little. She hated that her sister had every right to worry. She hated that the nine year old was burdened with this fear. She hated even more that she couldn't promise everything would end well. All she could promise was that she would do her best to come home to her. "Whatever Heckyl's plan is, it seems to involve not hurting you. That makes my job a lot easier."

"And Mrs. White?"

"Mrs. White isn't our teacher anymore," one kid announced, making his way over to Cammy with a bright smile. "We have another teacher. Mrs. Smith. She's so awesome!"

"What happened to Mrs. White?"

The boy shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, but after that alien attacked the school, she never came back. We got Mrs. Smith instead and she's the best."

"Hear that, Cammy," Kendall smiled. "Looks like Mrs. White won't be a problem for you anymore."

"I don't know Mrs. Smith," Cammy frowned. "What if she doesn't like me too?"

"She'll like you," Kendall promised, but took her sister's hand and walked into the school with her. Together, they found Cammy's classroom and quickly spotted the new teacher. She was much younger than Mrs. White, closer to Kendall's age. This already put Cammy a little more at ease. When Mrs. Smith saw Cammy standing outside her room, she told the rest of the students to continue getting ready for the start of the day and joined her new student and Kendall out in the hallway. Right away, she looked to Cammy's arm.

"You're not the brave kid who faced a monster, are you?" she asked and Cammy seemed a bit surprised.

"How do you know?"

"I have my sources," Mrs. Smith chuckled. She then looked to Kendall, "And you must be Ms. Morgan."

It was Kendall's turn to be a little surprised. Generally, she was only recognized around the museum.

"My kids love your museum," Mrs. Smith explained. "Terran, my oldest, wouldn't stop talking about dinosaurs for a week after my husband took him."

"I'm glad to hear that," Kendall said and then put her hands on Cammy's shoulder. "This is Cammy."

Mrs. Smith nodded her head and knelt down. She smiled at Cammy, "You know, kid, I'm pretty excited I get to be your teacher this year."

"You are?" Cammy asked.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Mrs. Smith nodded. "I hear we've got a mutual friend. You don't know a Gia Moran, do you? Blonde, wears a lot of yellow and black, owns a cat named Tiger."

Cammy perked up a little at the description. She knew Gia. She had met Gia once before with Kendall, and again after she fell for one of Heckyl's trips. Gia had always been nice. She nodded her head excitedly.

"Gia's one of my former... kids, I guess I can call it," Mrs. Smith smiled. "This is my first year teaching, but before this, I was something of a guidance counsellor for kids who were having a bit of a hard time at life."

Kendall felt her heart warm a little hearing this. So far, Mrs. Smith seemed very nice, and was much more attentive to Cammy that Mrs. White.

"Really?" Cammy asked. Mrs. Smith nodded her head.

"Yeah, those are some of the best kids," she said. "You've met Gia. She's pretty awesome, isn't she?"

Cammy nodded excitedly. Mrs. Smith continued to smile.

"Well, the school called Gia at work. You know she's a Silver Guardian, right? They asked her and her partner to check out the school before it opened again, and make sure it would be safe in case aliens did decide to show up here again. I think Gia remembered that you go to this school, she remembers finding you pretty special and so she asked me to take your teacher's place."

"That's cool," Cammy grinned, looking up at Kendall with real excitement on her face. Mrs. Smith nodded.

"I think so too. I think we're going to have a great year together. So why don't you come inside, get settled in, and we'll start with a few ice-breakers?"

"Okay," Cammy smiled, took her bag from Kendall and raced inside the room so she would be ready with the rest of her classmates. Kendall watched her go in with a smile on her face, completely relieved to see the year would be different from what she expected. Then she turned to Mrs. Smith.

"Thank you. She really needs this."

"Hey, you do for family," Mrs. Smith shrugged and Kendall frowned a little in confusion.

"Family?"

"Ranger family," Mrs. Smith said then offered Kendall her hand. "Serena Smith, Samurai White."

"Samurai?" Kendall asked. "Wait, from Panorama?"

"You know your Ranger history."

"You know about me?"

"Through Gia," Serena nodded. "She was called to take care of the school after the attacks, remembers Cammy goes here and knew she would be out of her mind if she were in your shoes. Luckily, she knew I had just gotten my teaching degree and so she helped me land the job after Mrs. White announced she was done with teaching. I'm here for the kids. I want to be their teacher. I think this is going to be a great year. But I'm also here for Cammy. I'm a Ranger; I have my morpher either on me or in my desk. Cammy is safe here."

Serena then looked inside the room, smiling when she saw the others students were talking with Cammy, asking her about the sling she was sporting.

"She's also going to have a great year. I promise you."

Kendall nodded her head and felt a wave of relief wash over her. Though she had never been paranoid that Cammy was in danger in school, Wrench's recent attack had caused some sleepless nights over Cammy returning. Kendall stayed strong for her sister, but had been worried until now about leaving her alone for the better part of the day for five days a week. So to hear that Cammy's teacher was not only kind, warm, and showed faith in her, but that she was a fellow Ranger really put Kendall at ease.

"Thank you."

"I'll be sending my contact info home with the students tonight. Cammy's sheet will have my personal number, email, and a way for you to reach my morpher. Feel free to use the first two for anything from homework questions to big issues, and the morpher just in case you and your team find yourself in a bit of a jam.

Kendall nodded her head, thanked Serena one last time and then made her way out of the school. However, instead of going straight to her car, she crossed the street to the park, joining her Rangers on the baseball diamond.

"We can leave," she said, to which they all looked to her in confusion.

"You said we'd stay here, just in case," Riley told her. "What changed your mind?"

"She'll be fine."

"With that Mrs. White?" Ivan asked. "Milady, Mrs. White you said was a..."

"Mrs. White isn't Cammy's teacher anymore. That'll be Mrs. Smith."

"Is Mrs. Smith better than Mrs. White?"

"Much," Kendall nodded her head. "Cammy will be fine. We have a museum to run."


End file.
